Catherine Theis, Aaron Minas

Catherine Marion Theis and Steven Aaron Minas were married Oct. 7 in Tucson, Ariz. The Rev. James J. Hushek, an affiliate of the Federation of Christian Ministries, officiated at the Arizona Inn.

The bride and groom are both fellows in the English department at the University of Southern California in Los Angeles. She is a doctoral candidate in creative writing and literature, and he is a doctoral candidate in literature.

Ms. Theis, 40, graduated from the University of Vermont, and received a master’s degree in poetry from the Iowa Writers’ Workshop.

She is a daughter of Maria Luisa Theis and William H. Theis of Winnetka, Ill. The bride’s father is the chief appellate lawyer in Chicago for the Federal Defender Program, which provides free legal representation to people accused of federal crimes.

Mr. Minas, 41, is known as Aaron. He graduated from the University of Arizona and received a master’s degree in English literature from Georgetown.

He is the son of Janet R. Minas of Tucson and the late Steve Minas Jr. The groom’s father retired from United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement, for which he was the special agent in charge in Tucson and the surrounding region.

The couple met in 2015 at a dinner in Los Angeles for prospective doctoral candidates that was hosted by U.S.C.’s English department. She was already a student in the program, and he was considering whether he should begin his doctoral studies there.